And he wasn’t looking forward to it. Not at all.
Po was eating a peanut butter sandwich for lunch when Jodi and Harper presented their plan for saving their teachers’ friendship. Morgan nodded along as he took a bite of banana. Theo sat listening in silence.
“We have to do something,” said Jodi. “We can’t just sit by while their friendship ends over some cocoons and a cybernetic coffeepot.”
“But what can we do?” Po asked.
“We’ve already started,” Jodi answered. “After we finished in the butterfly sanctuary yesterday, I removed the beetles from Ms. Minerva’s car. Doc was not joking.”
“And I got permission to go to the faculty lounge this morning,” said Harper. “I was able to get the coffee machine up and running.”
“I thought Ms. Minerva seemed better this morning,” said Morgan. “She got my name right during attendance, anyway.”
“You’re a genius, Harper,” Po said. “How did you fix the high-tech coffee machine so quickly?”
Harper grinned. “It wasn’t broken. Doc had just unplugged it, and nobody had thought to check the power cord.”
“Mad science,” said Po. “I’m telling you! Right, Theo?”
Theo didn’t say anything. In fact, he had hardly said anything all morning. His mind was clearly elsewhere.
“Here’s what we do next,” said Jodi. “We’re going to ask the yearbook club for photos—lots of photos. Years of photos. Everything they have of Doc and Ms. Minerva.”
“We’ll make a photo album,” said Harper. “And then we’ll scan it. I’ll upload a digital version of the album to Doc’s tablet while the rest of you sneak the physical album into the library. You can shelve it next to the young adult vampire novels, where Ms. Minerva will definitely find it eventually.”
“She does love those vampire novels,” Po said.
“And there you have it!” Jodi said. “Violins swell, they realize their friendship is precious, and we have saved the day.”
“It’s brilliant,” said Po. And he took a big bite of his sandwich.
Theo chose that moment to finally speak. “I have to tell you all something,” he said. “I made a mistake.”
Po tried to ask, “What do you mean?” But with his mouth full of peanut butter and bread, it sounded more like, “Waddle a meme?” Everyone gave him a weird look. But Theo answered his question anyway.
“I’ve been modding,” he said. “You all saw the footprint mod. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I’ve been making all kinds of stuff. And…” He took a deep breath. “I’ve even been messing with some of Doc’s mods.”
“I knew it!” Morgan growled, and the others all shushed him.
“Go on, Theo,” said Harper.
“I didn’t mean to cause problems,” Theo continued. “But the best way to learn coding is by playing with somebody else’s code. I thought if I figured out what Doc had done to the game…if I could wrap my head around all her modding…then I could figure out what went wrong with the Evoker King. I thought it would help me fix him.”
Jodi pressed her palms to her cheeks. “Theo,” she said. “Did…did your modding…did it destroy the Evoker King?”
“No. Maybe.” Theo said. “I don’t know. But the Evoker King isn’t gone. He’s just…different.”
“What do you mean?” asked Harper. “Different how?”
“The Evoker King didn’t explode. He transformed,” Theo said. “He transformed…into the Endermonster.”
Po gasped. He was lucky he didn’t choke on his sandwich.
“That creepy thing is…was…our friend?” Jodi asked.
“Poor Bob,” said Po.
“Is it permanent?” Harper asked. “Can we fix it?”
“I…I don’t know,” said Theo. “I think so. I’ll do whatever it takes to try.”
Po noticed Morgan wasn’t saying anything. Theo was afraid to even look in his direction.
Before anybody could say anything else, the cafetorium doors burst open. Doc hurried over to their table. “Sanctuary volunteers!” she cried. “The cocoons are hatching! Come quick!”
Doc didn’t wait for them to respond. She was running out the door before Po had even processed what she had said.
“Let’s go!” said Jodi.
“We’re not done discussing this,” Morgan said.
Harper was already out of her seat. “We can talk in the sanctuary. Come on,” she said, tugging on Theo. “I am not missing this!”
* * *
Po trembled with anticipation. A few of the butterflies had already emerged, but most of the cocoons were just beginning to hatch. He marveled at the sight. Each new butterfly stepped lightly out of its shell, as if uncertain or shy. But then it slowly spread its wings and gave them a test flap or two. Some instinct told it how to use those wings, and it quickly took flight.
He had thought they would all look the same. But each butterfly was a different color. Blue, orange, pink, green. It was like being inside a living prism.
A butterfly with light-blue wings landed on Po’s nose. It tickled, and when he laughed, the startled insect flew away.
“It’s kind of amazing,” he said. “They grew wings while inside their cocoons. They just grew a whole new body part!”
“And not just the wings,” said Harper. “They also develop longer legs and antennae and more complex eyes. Metamorphosis is complicated—they need those cocoons to keep them safe while they’re going through all those changes.” She frowned. “It’s weird. I actually thought I saw a butterfly in the game recently. Right after the Evoker King split open.”
“Me too!” said Po. “I saw a bunch of them through the smoke.”
Theo went pale. “That’s strange,” he said. “A butterfly was one of the mods I made. I was inspired to do it because I knew we’d be learning about them in Doc’s class.”
“So you made digital butterflies,” Morgan said, “and now they’re loose in the game?”
Theo shook his head. “That’s not possible. After I made sure that mod worked, I uninstalled it. The code for butterflies exists now, but it isn’t active.”
Po saw Jodi’s eyes light up. “It’s almost like…like someone is trying to tell us something.”
Harper gave Jodi a long look. “What do you mean?”
“Think about it,” Jodi said. “According to Theo, the Evoker King just went through a major transformation. A metamorphosis! And then, as soon as that happened, butterflies appeared in the game.”
“So you think the Evoker King was trying to tell us what had happened?” Po said. “By using Theo’s butterfly code?”
Jodi nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah! I mean, we kept saying he was ‘solid stone.’ Petrified. But what if the stone was more like a protective shell? A cocoon, keeping him safe while he changed?”
“It sort of makes sense,” Harper said. “He wasn’t programmed to be our friend. He decided to do that. And he was learning emotions and how to deal with them. His program was changing, and rapidly. What if he spun a cocoon to protect himself while his code rewrote itself into a new and improved Evoker King?”
“But that would mean…” Theo grinned. “That would mean it isn’t my fault that he changed! He was changing anyway.”
Harper frowned. “We don’t know anything for sure. But I don’t think he would have become the Endermonster. I think his programming was in flux…it was vulnerable….”
“And when I messed with Doc’s code, I created a monster.” Theo hung his head.
The door to the sanctuary opened. Po wasn’t surprised to see Doc enter. But he was surprised to see Ms. Minerva following right behind her, holding Baron Sweetcheeks in her hands.
“You see, Minerva?” said Doc. “It’s just like I said!”
“What a marv
el,” said Ms. Minerva. “I never imagined I’d witness something like this.”
The two teachers—and the hamster—shared a smile.
Po whispered to Jodi, “I guess they aren’t fighting anymore?”
Jodi whispered, “I’m still making that photo album just in case.”
Morgan looked at the teachers oohing and aahing at each new butterfly. Then he looked at Theo, who seemed miserable with guilt.
Morgan must have been inspired by the sight of the teachers putting their grudge aside. He put a hand on Theo’s shoulder and said, “It’s not your fault.”
Po hadn’t expected that.
“You were trying to help,” Morgan continued. “We all understand. And now that you’ve been honest with us…we can fix it somehow.”
“You mean it?” asked Theo.
“That’s what teams are for,” said Harper, and she put a hand on Theo’s other shoulder. “We share the problem. We solve it together.”
“Where do we start?” asked Jodi.
“Well, first, we should probably make sure the Endermonster doesn’t wander off,” said Theo. “If it does, we might never find it again.”
“So we need to capture it?” said Po. “That sounds hard, considering we can’t even look at it.”
“Well, I do know one trick we can use,” said Morgan. “It’s a way to look at an enderman without angering it. It should work on the Endermonster, too.”
“Okay, so with Morgan’s trick, we can look directly at the scary mob,” said Po. “Next problem: How do you capture something that can just teleport away?”
“I had an idea about that, actually,” said Harper. “What if we use its power against it? What if it teleports…right into a trap?”
“I like that,” Po said, and he felt a little thrill at the idea.
Time to show the Endermonster that it had messed with the wrong team.
Harper had changed her skin to an outfit better suited for capturing a hostile mob. She figured if Po could change his skin for every new adventure and whim, she could change hers for more practical reasons. But at the moment, she felt ridiculous. “Morgan, tell me again why I have to wear this pumpkin on my head,” she demanded.
“It’s safer this way. I promise!” Morgan told her. “The Endermonster has powers that an enderman doesn’t have. But it still acts like an enderman.” He put a pumpkin on his own head. “And an enderman attacks anyone who looks at it…unless that person is wearing a pumpkin.”
“Personally, I am a big fan of this plan,” said Po. “I could really lose my head over how cool it is!” In addition to the pumpkin head, he was wearing all black clothes, with a dark cape hanging from his shoulders. He looked like the Headless Horseman in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”
Harper sighed. She couldn’t shake the feeling that Morgan was playing a prank on them. But she knew he wouldn’t be so silly when they were on such an important mission.
They had to capture this mob or whatever it was if they had any hope of saving their digital friend.
“Let’s review the plan,” Harper said. “We need to dig a pit and then line the pit with soul sand, which I picked up last time we were in the Nether.”
“Because according to Morgan, endermen can’t teleport when they’re standing on soul sand,” said Jodi.
“That trick only works during the day,” said Morgan. “So we have to time this just right.”
“So we’ll get the Endermonster to teleport into the pit,” said Po. “It won’t be able to teleport out of the pit, and it will be too deep to climb out.”
“That just leaves the question of bait,” said Theo. “What do we use to lure the Endermonster into the pit?”
“Not what,” said Morgan. “Who.” He turned his pumpkin-head gaze to Theo. “How serious were you when you said you’d do anything to fix this?”
Harper knew that it wasn’t really possible, but she thought Theo’s avatar looked a little queasy.
* * *
The Endermonster was easy to find. It still hadn’t traveled very far from the site of their first battle. The mob shuffled from tree to tree, moving blocks around seemingly at random.
Harper passed out flasks of an electric-blue liquid. “Everybody drink up,” she said.
“It looks like a sports drink,” said Po.
Harper grinned. “You’re sort of right. These are potions of swiftness. We need to be quick against an enemy who can teleport.”
Theo drank his potion down. “I feel faster already,” said Theo. “Wish me luck.”
“We’ve got your back,” Jodi promised.
Theo removed the pumpkin from his head. He looked right at the Endermonster.
“Peek-a-boo!” he cried. “I see you, Endermonster!”
The Endermonster whirled at the sound of Theo’s voice. It emitted a bloodcurdling shriek.
“Now, Theo,” said Harper. “Go. Run!”
Theo turned and ran, hoping he would be fast enough. At the same moment, the Endermonster teleported to where Theo had just been standing, slamming its fists down on empty grass.
The mob shrieked in frustration. It scanned the forest with its sinister red eyes. When it spotted Theo, it teleported again. Once again, it just missed him.
“Theo’s staying ahead of it, thanks to the swiftness potion!” said Harper.
“And we need to keep up with them so we can help if his luck—or his speed—runs out,” said Morgan. “Come on, everybody!”
They all ran, weaving around the trees of the forest. Theo was in the lead, screaming his head off. The Endermonster was right at his heels. And Harper and her friends followed in the Endermonster’s wake, their pumpkins protecting them from its anger.
Finally, they reached the end of the forest and the edge of the pit. Theo didn’t even slow down. He leapt right into the hole. He would probably take some fall damage. Still, that would hurt less than a direct punch from the creature pursuing him.
But would it follow? Harper held her breath.
Then she let out a whoop of triumph. The Endermonster took the bait—it teleported itself right into the pit.
Theo dodged one more swing of its arms. Then he leapt for a ladder on the pit’s far side. He quickly climbed out of reach of the creature’s long limbs, and as soon as he was back on the grass, Morgan was there, smashing the ladder to bits with a pickaxe.
They’d done it. Their plan had worked. They’d captured the Endermonster!
But now that they had it…what would they do with it?
* * *
Ash found her friends near the Shack. They stood at the edge of a great pit, and they looked very serious.
But their eyes lit up with joy when they saw her.
“ASH!” cried Jodi, and she flung herself into Ash’s blocky arms.
“Hey, Jodi,” said Ash. “Good to see you, too. But, um…why is Po wearing a pumpkin on his head?”
“Fashion!” said Po. He threw his arms around both Jodi and Ash, and then Harper and Morgan joined in, making for an epic group hug. Theo kept his distance, though. Shyly, he waved hello from the edge of the pit.
“We caught it, Ash,” said Theo. “We have the Endermonster trapped.”
“For now,” said Morgan. He looked at the sun, already lowering in the sky. “When the sun sets, the mob will be able to teleport again. And we might not get a second chance.”
“So what do we do now?” asked Harper. “We need more time to figure out how to fix the Evoker King.”
“Could we make a cage?” Po asked. “Some kind of box the Endermonster can’t teleport out of?”
“Maybe we need to strike it down,” said Morgan. “If we got its health down, it might respawn in its original form.” He pulled out a bow. “From up here, it would be like shooting fish in a barrel.”
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“That is risky, big brother,” said Jodi. “And kind of mean.”
“Letting him run free is risky, too,” said Morgan.
Ash looked down at the mob. It paced on the soul sand. It seemed anxious, even scared. It looked up at her, and its red eyes met hers.
It shrieked. It shook. It tried to teleport…
But it was stuck.
“Don’t look at me!” it cried. “Don’t look at me! STOP LOOKING AT ME!”
Ash took a step back. It was too strange, hearing the Evoker King’s voice coming from the monster.
“It sounds angry,” said Po.
“Not angry,” Ash said. “Terrified.” She turned to Morgan. “Put the weapon away, Morgan. Attacking it doesn’t seem right.”
Morgan put the bow back in his inventory. But he still had a hard look in his eyes. “What else can we do?” he asked.
Ash put her fists on her hips. “Has anyone tried talking to it?”
“Talking?” said Po. “To Creepy McGlowyEyes down there?”
“It can speak with the Evoker King’s voice,” Ash replied. “Does that mean it can listen with the Evoker King’s ears?”
Everyone was silent for a moment.
“I’ll try it,” said Theo.
Then he thought about what he’d just said. “But only if the group agrees,” he added. “From now on, I won’t make decisions that affect all of us unless I discuss things with the team first.”
“What exactly are you offering to do?” asked Morgan, raising a rectangular eyebrow..
“I want to go back down into the pit,” Theo answered. “I want to talk to the Endermonster. Just me. All alone.”
Crack in the Code! (Minecraft Stonesword Saga #1) Page 5